


The New Teacher

by elizabookworm



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Boss/Employee Relationship, Eventual Smut, F/M, rumbelle fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-26
Updated: 2016-11-11
Packaged: 2018-08-11 06:00:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7879249
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elizabookworm/pseuds/elizabookworm
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After an English teacher resigns from Storybrooke University, Belle French finds herself being contacted by the Vice Chancellor and being offered a job. It turns out they had held onto her ‘flawless resume’ from her last (unsuccessful) application. The job requires an immediate start in order to fill the gap in staffing before the Chancellor (who was away on university business) returns. Soon she finds herself bumping into the Head of the History and Archaeology department, Professor Robert Gold, who also happens to be the Chancellor and, despite his reputation for being ruthless workaholic, Belle actually finds him very attractive…</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Welcome to Storybrooke University

**Author's Note:**

> This is kind of the introductory chapter into how Belle & Gold are going to get together. I just couldn't do too much fluff in this first chapter because they are still at the 'getting to know one another' phase. Hopefully you guys like it and I hope the story turns out the way it is in my head lol. I'm putting pen to paper and crossing my fingers!

As the bell rang throughout the lecture room, Miss French couldn’t help but feel relieved. It didn’t just mean the ending of class or the beginning of the weekend; it meant she successfully survived her first week of being an English teacher.

“Okay class, have a good weekend and please don’t forget; we are exploring romance in literature on Monday so bring your favourite book for the discussion.” Soon, the classroom was empty. The shuffling of books, the closing of bags and the sound of feet had all but silenced and the only thing that remained was the ticking of the clock. After tidying her desk, Belle threw on her purple coat and grabbed the pile of loose papers that wouldn’t fit in her handbag, not for the lack of trying. Turning off the lights with her elbow and closing the door with her foot, everything seemed to be going perfectly until she turned on her heels and collided with a passer-by in the corridor. The papers slid from her grip and scattered across the entire corridor. Belle was mortified. She found herself scrambling around on the floor trying to gather what seemed an infinite amount of pages.

“Oh – I am so sorry.” She said, not quite managing to face whoever she had just run into. Belle could feel a blush working its way across her face. Whoever she had bumped into, it was clearly a man because of the black polished shoes and black suit trousers her eyes fell upon.

“Here, allow me to help.” Said the mysterious voice, his accent intriguing her, as there was definitely a burr to it. A black cane with a golden handle had found its way to the floor and a pair of masculine hands helped her gather the documents.

When the last of the paper had been gathered, Belle stood up and found herself a little flustered as she stared into a gorgeous pair of deep brown eyes.

“Thank you for your help. I was so busy focusing on carrying all of this that I missed you coming down the corridor.” Belle admitted, still embarrassed by the entire situation. Who was he? She couldn’t help but admire the man in front of her; he was slightly taller than her and slim, with shoulder length hair that was greyish-brown. He was definitely late forties, possibly early fifties, dressed in a sharp black suit paired with a purple shirt and a matching tie.

“No need to apologise,” he said as he waved his hands to gesture that it was unnecessary, before continuing, “I was actually hoping to meet you, Miss French.” 

Belle’s forehead creased out of confusion by his confession, and the man smiled before revealing his identity, “My name is Professor Robert Gold and we have yet to be properly introduced...” He made a move as if to give her a handshake, but seemed to have thought better of it, seeing how both of her hands were occupied, struggling to not drop everything again. 

“I’m the chancellor but I also run the history and archaeology department just down the hall.” He added, and Belle felt momentarily embarrassed. Naturally of all people she had to almost flatten, it had to be the boss. 

“I’ve made a great first impression, haven’t I?” She said with a laugh.

“Oh, I dunno. It may not be the best first impression but it's definitely not the worst I've seen, Miss French.” He said in a playful manner and it put Belle’s mind at ease, causing her to smile shyly.

“Thanks, it’s nice of you to put me out of my misery. Anyway, it’s really lovely to finally meet you, Professor Gold.” Belle said as she shuffled some papers under her arm and extended her hand in order to shake his, almost spilling the papers yet again in the process. Their hands lingered a little longer than anticipated so, unsure of what to do, Gold cleared his throat and Belle manoeuvred the papers safely into her hands once again.

“I trust you have been settling in well with the staff and students?” He asked, and his interest seemed genuine as Belle noticed the faint glimpse of a smile. As her nerves began to dissipate, she felt a little more at ease talking to Gold. 

“Oh, yes… of course. Everyone has been very kind and the students are lovely, they really are. To tell you the truth, I was more than a little nervous when I accepted this position but I’m so glad that I did!”

“Good. Well, I can see that you are on your way home so I won’t keep you, but if you need anything; some files or some paperclips, for example” he said as he playfully gestured towards the bundle of papers and looked almost pleased, “my office is at the top of the corridor, you can’t really miss it. Good evening, Miss French.” He said, walking away from her with a small victorious grin.

“Good evening, Professor.” Belle replied. She couldn't help but smile as she replayed the chancellor’s little sarcastic remark about her lack of filing. Perhaps he wasn’t so bad after all...

\------------------------

Over the next few weeks, Belle made friends with staff at the university and fell into particular favour with Dr Archie Hopper; the psychology teacher, Miss Ruby Wolfe; an art teacher and Miss Mary-Margaret Blanchard; the other English teacher. During one particular lunch, Belle decided to strike up a conversation about their shared employer.

“So what about Professor Gold? He’s always working yet I never see him. Doesn’t he eat?” Belle almost sounded a little frustrated when asking her questions, she found it a little annoying that she didn't see much of the professor. She certainly wanted to see more of him.

Ruby was the first to jump in with an answer, she was dying to bring Belle up to speed with the gossip. “No one really knows that much about him. What we do know is he’s divorced... it was quite a nasty affair, apparently. His wife Milah ran off with some guy from who-knows-where and that was the end of that relationship. Anyway, the professor and Milah have a son together but I've never seen him. I don't think he and Gold kept in touch after the split." - Belle was hanging off Ruby's every word and found herself leaning in closer to Ruby just to be sure she didn't miss out any details, - "He was kind of a workaholic before the split but ever since then, he has been totally focused on his career... this university is all he has. He always works through his breaks, skips lunches and works well into the evening. If you haven't already noticed, he keeps to himself and isn't the biggest people person."

Belle couldn't help but feel sorry for the man as she stared down at her cup of tea, “That’s quite sad, don’t you think? I see his car drive past my house first thing in the morning - he is making his way into work while I'm still waking up! You'd think he would have a girlfriend or something." He wasn’t quite the monster everyone made him out to be, he was just lonely and misunderstood. He also wasn't bad looking so she found it shocking that he didn't have someone to go home to.

“Nope, he hasn’t really dated since his divorce and that was a long time ago. I mean, there were one or two women but they were, well, they weren’t very nice people to know…” said Archie. He too felt bad for his boss, even if the man did unnerve him.

Mary-Margaret could see Belle’s facial expression; it was a mixture of sadness and hope when she had heard Gold didn't have a girlfriend. “Wait, I know that look…”- She realigned herself and was now facing Belle head on- “you like him, don’t you?” Mary-Margaret was like a dog with a bone and wouldn’t relent.

Belle could feel her face becoming scarlet as she tried to defend herself, “Oh come on you guys. He is the boss…”, but they weren’t buying it.  
“Hmm hmm” All three chorused as they shared the same disbelieving look.

Ruby piped up and said, “Archie’s right, I’ve seen the way you look at him and I’ve seen the way he looks at you… that man’s smiles are rarer than a blue moon." Belle was getting butterflies in her stomach because she hadn’t noticed the way he looked at her but clearly everyone else did.

"You guys didn’t… did you? Did you?” Snow was whispering excitedly, begging for Belle to tell her some raunchy details about her and the boss.

“NO!” Belle exclaimed. “No. We haven’t. I’ve only spoken to him a few times, that’s it. He is just being polite.” Belle gulped her tea, purely so the cup would help cover her blushing face. It wasn't working.

“He doesn’t smile. EVER. Well, he does but not the sweet smiles he gives you. His smiles are more like the ‘you have no idea what you’ve just done and you’ll regret it’ kind of smiles.” Miss Blanchard said with a shudder – she knew all too well about those kinds because she was on the receiving end of his once and it gave her the shivers.

“You guys, don’t be silly. Besides even if I did like him, he's the boss. I don’t have a lot of wiggle room here and who’s to say he is even interested in me?” but as Belle said the words, she couldn’t help but wonder if he was interested.

Much to Belle’s relief, lunch ended with the sounding of the bell. Although the conversation hadn't gone quite how she had planned, at least Belle had learned a little about her aloof boss...  
\-----------------------

One Friday evening in early November, Belle found herself standing in the photocopier room running off sixty copies of test questions and book extracts as revision material for her students. She hadn’t anticipated staying this long but thanks to a few technical errors in converting Microsoft documents, computer freezes and photocopier jams, it was ten o’clock and she was only now approaching the end of her task. Upon completion, Belle flicked off the light, shut the door and made her way back to the lecture room but on her travels, she noticed a faint light coming from Gold’s office. She had been in the school for nearly three months and was all too familiar with his usual routine, so she found it puzzling that his office light was on. Normally he left the office at half past nine. Glancing down at her watch Belle could see that it had now just gone ten minutes past ten, so she decided to investigate further.

There was no noise as she stood outside the office, nor could she see any movement through the frosted glass. Suddenly she realised what might have happened. “I bet he forgot to turn off that lamp on the way out again,” she thought to herself - it wouldn't be the first time he forgot to do that. Belle recalled an incident when one of the night cleaners alerted Professor Gold to the fact that he had left an office lamp on and they had to turn it off.

“Jesus!” Belle exclaimed as suddenly a loud bang came from inside the office. She almost leapt from her skin as her heart started to pound in her chest. The offending noise was enough to make her ears ring and hands release the photocopied pages, causing them to whirl to a pile on the floor. “Just bloody fantastic”, she thought irritated, finding herself stooping to the floor in order to wrangle up the wild papers. The office door opened in that moment, causing a faint light to seep out into the corridor.

“Miss French?” Said the all too familiar voice.

“Not again”, Belle found herself cursing her stupidity and timing once more.

“Here, let me help…” Gold said as he knelt to the ground, the whole scenario giving them both a sense of Déjà vu.

“Professor Gold... I think this is becoming a habit,” Belle replied with a laugh. While the pair gathered the documents once again, she started to explain the situation. “I saw the light coming from your office and assumed you’d forgotten to turn it off but then there was a bang and well, I wasn’t prepared for it, as you can see…” She admitted somewhat bashfully as she gestured to the paper sprawled across the floor.

“I see." At least it was a legitimate excuse, he mused. "As you are now aware, I’m still very much in the office. No rest for the wicked, I'm afraid." Gold mentally added that he must have been something pretty damn wicked in his past life if he is working this many hours to pay for his sins. There was a price for success and his happened to be time - there weren't enough hours in the day. 

While they were kneeling, Belle could see dark circles forming around his eyes from the lack of sleep. He looked how she was feeling at this point; beyond the point of exhaustion. The Professor stopped picking up pages for a moment and looked at Belle.

“I apologise for the bang, it was nothing more than a book falling to the floor. I knocked it off the shelf while I was trying to reach for another... I'm not the tallest of men." He joked before continuing, "My head was nearly a buffer zone between the book and the floor. Although it reassures me that, had I been injured, you were at least right outside my door.”

Belle couldn't help but give a soft smile and a light giggle. “Well I’m very glad that it hit the floor rather than your head. I think finding you on the floor would have given me an even bigger fright, don’t you?” She said as they hauled themselves to their feet.

Gold stood in the spot for a moment, fidgeting slightly with his hands atop the cane, as he wondered how to proceed. “Would you… would you like to join me in the office? I was just about to make some tea. I could also help you sort through those papers considering it was my book that made them scatter.” His dark brown eyes had softened and he gave Belle a weary smile. Although he was tired and still had plenty of work to do, Belle was a lovely reprieve from the seemingly interminable staff appraisals.

“That would be lovely” Belle said. There was a hint of exhaustion that she couldn’t keep away from her voice, and a cup of tea was exactly what she needed right now. 

Ever the gentleman, the professor held the door open as Belle walked into the office and placed her large, unorganised paper pile on his desk. There was an awkward silence between them as he flicked on the kettle to make two cups of tea but soon after, with teas in hand, they started to relax and the conversation found a comfortable rhythm.  
Gold helped Belle re-organise her photocopying while they chatted about pretty much anything and everything, and he even gave her a packet of paperclips to help minimise the chances of another filing disaster. He secretly hoped that she would pick up on the reference to the first time they ran into one another and she managed to successfully decorate the corridor floor in paper. 

When she saw the packet of paperclips, Belle could only laugh and reply with "yes, I can take a hint. I'm a disaster..."

Their conversation continued long after the tea had been finished and the paperwork was organised, and it was only when Gold saw Belle yawning that he became aware of the time, the midnight approaching fast.

"As much as I would love to continue this conversation, I do believe it is time you got home, Miss French," Gold gestured towards the clock and Belle's eyes widened at the realisation of the time, "I have kept you long past your hours..." He said, giving her a warm smile.

"You didn't keep me, I wanted to stay... but, I think you’re right, soon I will not be fit to drive." Belle admitted before yawning once more.

Truth be told, she didn't mind staying in work this late if it meant spending time with the professor. Earlier she had been thinking just how wrongly her Friday had been going and that she should be at home, with her feet up and drinking wine but instead was stuck in work, photocopying. Now she couldn't be any more thankful that she was in work at this hour because Gold was excellent company. Belle felt a little saddened at the prospect of having to end their conversation, but he was right; if she didn't go home now, she wouldn't be fit to drive.

"Would you like me to escort you to the car? " Gold asked shyly. "It's very dark outside and the staff car park is quite a way away..." Belle was flattered at his offer and gave him a sweet smile. 

"Yes, I'd very much like that..." She couldn't quite bring herself to look at his face because she felt like a giddy school girl, blushing at his request. 

On his part, the professor was somewhat grateful for her lack of eye contact because he too had a boyish smile plastered over his face and if anyone ever saw it, his ruthless reputation would be in tatters.

Belle left his office to collect the remainder of her things and switch off the lights in her lecture room, while Gold turned off his computer, pulling on his black coat and golden scarf before locking the office up for the weekend. The pair then rejoined in the corridor and Gold insisted on carrying Belle's papers, his reason being that he had no intentions of picking them up off the car-park grounds this late in the evening. The remark earned him a playful jab to the hip from Belle's elbow.

It was actually a little colder and windier than Belle had realised, as the pair made it outside of the university building, so Belle unknowingly closed the distance between her and the professor, who was all too happy to provide her with a little shelter from the cold wind.

Just before they parted ways to reach their individual cars, Gold returned her papers. "Mind now, don't drop those again..." He gave Belle a smirk.

"I will try..." she quipped. "Well, goodnight Professor Gold. I hope you have a good weekend. Try not to do too much work..." Belle said as she gave him a warm smile.

"Goodnight, Miss French." And with that, they parted ways, both hoping for something more but not entirely sure how much more just yet. The only thing they had managed was a few secret glances while the other had their back turned.


	2. Just missing one another

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All I'm saying is it starts out pretty fluffy... 
> 
> By the end, I found myself saying "Aww..."

On Monday morning Belle awoke with a smile on her face, knowing all too well that she had to get up and get ready for work. She loved being a teacher and didn’t mind the early starts, even on these colder mornings, but today she was slightly more than a little excited to be going into work. Was that wrong? After all, it was just a typical Monday. As she lay in bed, she couldn’t help but hug the warm covers and think of her time spent talking and laughing with the professor last Friday night. Admittedly, she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him all weekend. She was falling for him and falling hard. There is no rule about fancying your boss, surely? “I mean, I can look and not touch”, she thought as she smiled into the duvet.

Belle slid out of the covers and went through her usual morning routine. However, this morning, she took a little more care when applying her makeup and fixing her hair, she was even sure to lightly dab some perfume on her neck and wrist. Nothing wrong with looking and smelling your best, she thought as she looked in the mirror.

Pulling up in her usual parking spot, Belle could see that the professor was already in work. This was hardly surprising giving that it was 8.30am and he was in work by quarter past seven every day. It wasn’t uncommon for her to walk through the history and archaeology department in order to get to English, if anything - it was quicker, but this morning the professor was actually stood in the corridor, pinning notices to one of the boards, rather than being holed up in his office.

Gold had seen Miss French the second she and her brightly coloured scarf had set foot in the corridor and desperately tried to contain his beating chest - little did he know that Belle was doing the very same.

“Morning, Professor Gold!” Belle said with a cheery smile. She couldn't help but ogle the professor; he looked as sharp and as handsome as ever this morning, suited, booted and ready to tackle the day. 

“Ah, good morning Miss French.” Said Gold, trying to sound as if he hadn’t been aware of her presence. He noted that there was a very, very faint smell of perfume and he was positive of the source. It was a flowery fragrance, nothing over-bearing, merely enough to tease the senses. It was certainly enough to entice his. “I trust you had a pleasant weekend? You seem to be in fine spirits this morning.” To him, she had a slight glow and there was something about her face - she looked happier than usual. Not only that, but she looked glorious this morning - the winter weather suited Belle because it nipped at her nose, turning it, and her cheeks, slightly pinkish.

“I did, thinking about you”, she found herself mentally responding. Belle couldn’t help but crack a small, cheeky smile… she should be ashamed. “I stayed at home all weekend because it was beyond freezing, but it was lovely and relaxing. I did some leisurely reading and even had the odd glass of wine. And you?”

“It was better than most, I must admit. It makes a nice change” He replied, without elaborating any further. Gold didn’t actually bother that much with marking or appraisals over the weekend; he found it too hard to concentrate because his thoughts often drifted to a certain English teacher.

“Well, I better make my way to class… I hear the chancellor is pretty strict about staff clocking in and I wouldn’t want to upset him.” Belle winked at him and he responded with a playful but stern look, pretending to be offended by her remark, before he nodded in agreement.

“Indeed he is. You'd better hurry, I hear he is out in the corridors this morning.” Gold couldn’t help but watch Miss French walk down the corridor and disappear into her room. He awarded himself a little smile knowing that his plan for pinning random notices was indeed successful… Belle wasn’t the only one who was familiar with other people’s timetables and routines.

\---------------------

To Belle’s dismay, the rest of the day had gone by in a fairly uneventful fashion and she hadn’t spoken to the professor since their morning encounter. She did at least manage to catch a smile from him on the way past his office at lunch but he was about to close the door and begin a meeting, so the interaction went no further.

Five o’clock came as did the sounding of the bell, and soon the classroom was quiet. The only thing that remained was Belle, her thoughts and the ticking clock. She planned on going home early this evening but she also wanted to go and see Professor Gold before leaving, although she wasn’t entirely sure why. Belle sat tapping her fingers in rhythm with the ticking of the clock, debating on whether or not to go to Gold’s office. She was being ridiculous, there was no reason why she couldn’t go over there and just say hello. Before she knew it, Belle found herself walking down the corridor and standing right outside his office. 

Just before knocking on the door, Belle could hear voices – Gold’s and someone else’s, discussing university progress and statistics - he was in a meeting of sorts. Belle sighed and felt slightly disappointed as she returned to her empty lecture room. “Who knows how long he will be in that meeting...”, she thought. Looking at the clock, it was 5.25pm and already dark out, it also looked cold enough for the roads to be icy, so she conceded to heading home early for the evening.

\---------------------

As Gold sat in his office, impatiently listening to the inspector drone on about his recent findings in the university and how much progress has been made since last year’s observations, he couldn’t help but wonder what Miss French was up to. Her earlier smile had made his day a little more bearable - it was such a rare thing for him to get a genuine heart-warming smile from someone, let alone a member of staff.

He was eager for the tedious meeting to come to an end, not least because it was over-running by a good 25 minutes. Gold was miles away until he caught the words, “and finally I would like to add…” Hallelujah. Thank Christ this man was nearly finished. Why he had to sit through inspectors reports, he would never know. Gold spent enough man-hours working in the university to know what condition it was in without board members sending in a complete stranger to observe for a few days and relay totally predictable feedback.

Music to his hears. The sweet, sweet words, “I think that is everything… I look forward to the next inspection, chancellor.” I bloody don’t, Gold found himself thinking as he grinned and shook the man’s hand, only too pleased to see the inspector leaving the office. After that meeting, Gold was anxious to escape the confines of the office and stretch his legs. He had been cooped up all day with virtually no breaks – just meeting after meeting, with a lecture and seminar in-between. It was the perfect opportunity to ‘casually stroll’ by Miss French’s lecture room and pay her a visit, after all, it had only just turned half past five. Grabbing his cane, he made his way along the history corridor before turning off into English and proceeding to Miss French’s lecture hall.

Gold knocked on the door and called out, “Miss French?” as he entered the large room.

The lights were off and the room was empty, indicting she must have gone home for the evening. His earlier excitement had dissipated, only to be replaced by a feeling of annoyance directed toward the irritatingly obtuse inspector, and sadness because he hadn’t had the opportunity to talk to Belle before she left. Gold closed the door and retreated to the loneliness of his office for the remainder of the evening.


	3. Always something between them

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so I hadn't expected it to drag out quite so long as this but I promise, the smut is coming! lol. I already have half of the next chapter done.
> 
> Basically, Belle and the professor are becoming very close now and they are definitely much more at ease with one another's presence. As Gold always works through lunch and rarely eats, Belle decides to pay him a little surprise visit and brings a lot some treats...

There was a knock on the room door and it caused Gold to lose track of his train of thought.

“Christ, all I want is ten minutes of bloody peace so I can get this done but I’m clearly asking too much”, he thought bitterly. What could possibly be wrong now? It’s lunch! Gold stopped writing and glanced over from the side of the white board but he could see no one. He was about to return to his work when Miss French popped her head around the door.

“Sorry, am I interrupting you Professor?” She asked hesitantly, noticing the scowl on his face. Clearly he was in the middle of something or he wouldn’t have that peeved look on his face, she thought.

“No, no…” His face began to soften and the scowl quickly dissipated. If Belle didn’t know any better, she would swear he looked almost relieved to see her, despite his earlier frown. “I was just making a few scribbles, so feel free to come in. I don’t bite, you know.” He joked. 

As Belle entered the class, Gold noticed that she was carrying a small translucent tub. He couldn’t quite make out the contents because she wasn’t close enough.

“Was there something you wanted, Miss French?” He asked, realising that he hadn’t yet enquired as to why she was knocking on his door.

The question had caught Belle a little off-guard and she felt nervous, starting to ramble. “I just wanted to know if you wanted a bit of lunch. It’s just, I made cupcakes and left them in the staff room but you weren’t there, so I saved some and I thought you might - well, you might like one. Would you… like one?” She said, her voice a little unsteady with nerves, as she opened the lid of the tub to reveal some ornately decorated pastel pink cupcakes.

Gold was gobsmacked. This was a real first – a colleague offering him a cupcake… a pink cupcake at that. She remembered him. Miss French deliberately went out of her way for him. He looked at the woman with wide eyes, unsure of how to process the entire situation. He had been a teacher for over twenty years and no one had ever made him a cupcake – or voluntarily came to him to have lunch.

“That’s very kind of you, thank you Miss French.” He said as he stared at the woman before him. She truly was beautiful inside and out.

“I would have brought you tea but we all know my track record with carrying too many things at once – there would have been a trail from here to the staff room.” Belle said, laughing at her own clumsiness.

“Never fear… Not wanting to boast but I’m on good terms with the chancellor and I’m sure I could use the tea machine in his office.” Gold winked and excused himself, while Belle set out some napkins and left the tub in the middle of his desk. As she was taking a seat, the professor returned with two teas in hand.

“Mind, these are a wee bit hot so be sure to blow – oh and the handles can get a little warm.” He said, and for just a split second their hands brushed against one another as he handed the warm cup over to Belle. He took his seat opposite Belle on the other side of the desk and he couldn’t help but curse the barrier between them. It seemed as if there would always be something to keep them apart or to prevent him from getting any closer. 

He couldn’t help but admire Belle, noting how she looked utterly content blowing the steam off the hot tea before taking a slow sip, testing the temperature to ensure she didn’t get burned.

“Mmm. That is a good cup of tea,” Belle said as she took the tea cup from her mouth and placed it on the table, before taking a bite of one of cupcakes. “I get so grumpy when I don’t eat so I have no idea how you work through lunch.” She admitted. Although, it did provide an explanation as to why he was so thin, she mused.

“To be honest, I don’t keep track of the time that well, so I never really notice lunch passing. Perhaps that’s why I’m always grumpy.” He said as a playful smirk worked its way across his face.

“That would actually explain a lot, you know.” Belle couldn’t help but laugh when she saw his facial expression change. Lately, he was much more at ease during her visits and she could see just how comfortable and relaxed he was talking to her – even when she was teasing him a little.

“You aren’t supposed to agree so readily to my confession, Miss French.” Gold chuckled, impressed by the young teacher’s retort.

“I don’t think you are grumpy… well, not all of the time.” She secretly loved it when he playfully pretended to be offended; he looked so adorable with a frown, particularly because it caused his deep brown eyes to soften before smiling.

Gold went to pick up a cupcake from the box and couldn’t help admire the decorations, “These are very good. Did you make them yourself?” He asked. He stared at the little cupcake as if it was a rare antique of great value. He loved how they were pastel pink; some were adorned with little butterflies and others with rose swirls. Of course she would have to go to such great lengths to make a cupcake look so pretty and appetising. And they were very appetising. Gold wasn’t a fan of overly-sweet things but he admittedly loved the taste of the butter cream icing.

“I learned to bake them while I was in school. Did you know that cupcakes are one of the quickest ways to a teacher’s heart?” she stated matter-of-factly before adding with a little laugh, “or a chancellor’s.” Her face fell a little after a moment and it turned somewhat sad. “I couldn’t sleep last night so I decided to bake at three in the morning. Has that ever happened to you?”

“Baking at three in the morning? I can’t say it ever has…” He quipped, hoping to cheer her up a little.

“No,” Belle giggled before continuing, “I mean not being able to sleep? Being restless?”

“Ah, now that I can relate to,” Gold said as he looked down at his cup of tea. It happened more than he cared to admit. “It usually happens when I’m troubled or I’m thinking about something too much. It can be very difficult to switch off” – as Gold looked up from his cup, he could see that Belle had a slightly sad smile as she clearly could relate to what he was talking about – “You know, Miss French,” he said, before continuing in a sincere and genuine tone, “should anything bother you, be it little or big, and you want to talk to someone, you know where my office is. My door is always open to you and, although I may not be able to provide comfort or answers, I can certainly listen…”

Belle could feel the emotion welling up in her chest so she instinctively leaned forward to take the professor’s hand in hers. It was probably the nicest and kindest thing anyone had said to her. For the last few days Belle had found herself lying awake, tossing and turning, thinking about the Christmas exams and ensuring that her students were prepared whilst trying to keep on top of her own work load and filing… she was afraid of dropping one of the spinning plates and disappointing either a student or Gold.

“Thank you, that really means a lot to me.” She said, automatically rubbing her thumb over his hand. It was the second time Belle had managed to catch Gold off guard today but he loved the feeling of her warm fingers wrapping around his cold hands; the way how it felt completely natural to him – to them both - it was almost as if it was where they belonged.

“Belle, I –“ but before he could continue, the bell sounded to signal that lunch was over. He couldn’t help but curse the timing, it was just typical… there was always something between them. “I’ll speak to you later,” he said gently. It certainly wasn’t how he had intended the conversation to go, but the students would soon be arriving and he knew that she had to get back to class, the less they saw the better as the rumours spread like wildfire in this university. He didn’t mind them himself, but he didn’t want Belle to have to endure the taunts and gossip just because she was seen having lunch with the chancellor.

Belle couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed that she didn’t get to spend more time with him, but she was relieved that he at least ate lunch today and that she did get to spend time with him, however brief. Belle gave the professor a warm smile before she squeezed his hand and took her leave. Making her way down the corridor, she found herself smiling bashfully after having a moment of realisation... It was the first time that the professor had called her Belle.


	4. Like a schoolboy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> At their last meeting, Gold had something important to ask Miss French but he never had the chance so now he finds himself hanging outside her classroom, unsure of what to do. His mind is made up for him when she dismisses the class early and they have a chat...

Gold felt his heart pounding in his chest as he paced up and down the corridor deciding what to do. Was this really a wise decision? His hands felt clammy, his legs were weak and the tie around his neck felt as if it was choking him. Who on earth would willingly subject themselves to something that had similar symptoms to a heart attack? If he had any sense at all, he would make a run for it. His lips curled at his pathetic choice of phrase; run was the wrong word, he could hobble. Just quietly hobble away to his classroom and no one would ever know and nothing would ever change.

Inside the classroom, a student caught sight of the chancellor anxiously patrolling the corridor. “Miss…” the student tried to get the teachers attention. “Miss,” he said again, only a little louder. Belle stopped writing on the board and turned to address her pupil. “Sorry Miss French, the chancellor is outside the door and I think he might be looking for you.” Belle's heart fluttered in her chest - Gold was outside her classroom. "Why? What could he possibly be looking for?" she couldn't help but wonder.

“Oh? Oh, I see…” Belle responded whilst checking the clock above the board. She glanced toward the door at the back of the room, “I think we’ve done enough war poetry for today so you are all free to go,” she said, dismissing the class. The university day was practically over anyway and they were particularly co-operative for today’s lesson, so she didn't have any qualms in setting them loose a mere ten minutes early. Belle heard books closing, pens clicking, bags zipping and feet shuffling, as well as polite thanks for the early ending of class.  
“Amazing”, she mused. It took them fifteen minutes to get in here and get settled at the start of every lesson, yet they can pack up and vanish in a mere two minutes without fail, when it’s over.

Gold didn’t know what was going on. He found himself lost in a sea of noisy students who were eager to get home. He had to lean up against the wall just to ensure he didn’t get washed away with the crowd flooding the corridor. No wonder the students liked her - the lesson wasn’t due to end for another few minutes according to his watch. Most teachers detained their students to the very last second – or even longer – before unleashing them out into the world. 

As the professor entered the classroom, he looked both puzzled and amused with an arched eyebrow as he pointed his cane towards the door, “You do realise that class isn’t officially over yet? You’ll get in trouble if the chancellor catches you letting them out early.” Gold’s lips curled up slightly at the ends, revealing the beginnings of a devilish smirk.

“Now, I’m fairly certain I could handle the chancellor. Besides, you shouldn’t believe all the rumours. I happen to know he is very sweet and very kind.” She caught herself a little off guard with her own flirting as she felt a blush make its way across her cheeks. In a lousy cover-up attempt, she picked up the books on her table before kneeling to the floor to slot them neatly in her desk shelves. She needed to do something to hide her face so it might as well be something productive.

The pair had developed a routine over the last few months and the teasing had become a regular form of banter. Very few people would dare to tease the chancellor and even less would get away with it, but Gold secretly loved their little chit-chats. He found them amusing, particularly when he got Belle’s cheeks to rouge up or got her riled up and passionate about something – although that took a lot more work. Over time, she saw through his tactics and, on more than one occasion, used them against him.

“You know, I wouldn’t spread that around, Miss French. A ruthless reputation takes years to build and seconds to shatter.” He retorted light-heartedly.

Gold limped to the desk, and to his amusement, a little brown curl would peep above the wooden desk top every so often, soon to be followed by a pair of gleaming sapphire blue eyes. Gold felt quite anxious as he remembered why he came to the classroom; it was definitely too late to back out now. This was a now or never, fight or flight moment and he had hoped that his cowardly instincts wouldn't kick in and cause him to go running – well, quickly limping.

“Miss French…” Gold paused for a moment, deciding whether to fight or flight. Belle stopped putting away her books and turned to face him. She couldn’t help but wonder if there was something on his mind, something that was bothering him, so she gave him a wholehearted smile, encouraging him to continue.

“Belle,” she said. He looked a little perplexed so she clarified further, “You do know you can call me Belle? I think we’ve known one another long enough by this stage, don’t you?”   
Gold gave a nervous laugh as she positioned herself directly in front of him. Her eyes were totally mesmerising and they were almost enough to distract him from the task at hand. He tightened the grip on his cane, hoping in some way that it will give him – and his legs - the support he needed to get the next part out.

“Belle,” he stopped for a moment and began shifting his feet apprehensively, “If you don’t have any prior engagements would you care to join me for dinner sometime this week?”   
To Gold, waiting for an answer felt like a lifetime. He had said it now and there was nothing he could do to take it back. The very thought that she had the ability to take his heart and crush it, terrified him. Although, why would she possibly have feelings for him? He was damaged goods. Married and divorced, feared by staff and students, rejected by everyone in his life, even his own son. He wouldn’t be shocked if Belle rejected him, he wouldn’t blame her in the slightest because if the shoe was on the other foot, he’d reject the offer too.

Belle stood there, wide-eyed and absolutely flabbergasted. She didn’t know how to respond because she didn't want to jump the gun and make a total fool of herself. Was this a work thing he was asking her out on or was this a date? Belle didn’t know what to think. Meanwhile, the suspense was killing the Professor; he didn’t know how much more he could endure.

Belle finally found her voice. “Are you asking me out on a date? Like a date date?” She quizzed, still unsure.

Gold misinterpreted her question and concluded that she was appalled at the very notion of him asking her out, and it made his heart plummet to the pit of his stomach. Admitting defeat, he was about to turn on his heels as he started to ramble, “It was a bad ide-“ but before he could finish, Belle stopped him dead in his tracks by pressing her lips directly onto his. He was so completely and utterly stunned that he stared with his eyes wide open in disbelief while her lips were still on his. He didn’t know how to process the situation – his brain was in a turmoil at this moment.

As Belle broke the kiss, she couldn't help but relish in the fact that the ‘big bad chancellor’ was rendered dumbstruck by a little English teacher. His face was absolutely priceless. She imagined the very cogs turning full pelt in the back of his head trying to make sense of what just happened.

“I’m really glad you asked. I would love to go out on a date with you and you should never have thought otherwise, silly man,” she said as she bit her lip to hide her smile.

Gold was stood like an idiot. He could feel himself beaming and he could bet it was that goofy school-boyish smile. When his mind stopped reeling and he eventually found his voice, Gold cleared his throat, trying not to sound too excited – secretly he was ecstatic, but he had to play this cool or else he would make a fool of himself. Again. 

“How about tomorrow or is that too soon?” He queried, unsure of whether or not he was pushing things.

“Tomorrow is perfect!” Belle made no attempts to disguise her excitement, she was all too eager to go out on a date with the chancellor. When Belle first met him back in September, she had hoped that he would ask her out eventually – she didn’t think it would take him this long but nonetheless, she was still ecstatic. “You can pick me up at seven thirty. Ah, have you got a pen?” she asked, patting her pockets and searching her desk but to no avail.

Gold’s lips quirked at the thought of an English teacher with no pen, it was just Belle all over. The woman was certainly unusual and quirky in all kinds of different ways; it was what made her unique.

“What are you smiling at? I know that look, Professor.” Belle knew all too well what he was laughing at, “I do have pens - I have an entire packet, actually,” she said matter of factly, before continuing a little less confidently, “I just seem to have misplaced them at this moment in time…”

He still found the situation no less amusing as he whipped out the pen from inside his suit pocket. "Of course." He said, playfully nodding in agreement.

Belle expected to be handed a basic biro pen but instead was handed a gold parker pen that actually had a bit of weight to it. “Aren’t we fancy?” She murmured, studying the pen.

“It was given to me by the previous chancellor upon his retirement. He said to me that I’d need a good pen because with this job, there would no end to the signing. He was right. It served him well and it has served me just the same. Hopefully it’ll serve whoever takes over as chancellor after I retire,” he said. He didn't particularly care about the pen, as his curiosity was piqued by what she was scribbling down on the piece of scrap paper.

“Here,”– She handed Gold a piece of paper and manoeuvred herself until she was leaning against his arm– “That is my number and that is my address,” she pointed to each detail as if he didn’t know which one was which.

The professor stared at the address, it looked familiar but he couldn’t place it for a moment. “Hold on a second… I actually know where this is. I drive past there every morning on my way to work.” Gold was a little distracted by the proximity of Belle, he hadn’t realised that she was leaning up against his arm, but now he could smell the scent of her apple shampoo radiating from her curly hair and also the faintest hint of floral perfume mixed with what could only be her laundry detergent – it was the smell of freshly washed clothing. It was entirely intoxicating to his senses but it was also extremely comforting knowing that she was by his side – which is where she always seemed to be, when he thought about it.

Belle looked up at him with bright blue sparkling eyes and a smile that was equally enchanting. “I know you do, I see you drive by every morning while I’m still sleepily sipping a cup of tea,” she admitted shyly. It was by chance one morning that she was awake early and decided to check what the weather was like, and when she opened the curtains she saw Gold’s car waiting at the stop lights. The next morning she got up at the same time, curious to see if he would be there, and sure enough, like clockwork every day since, he was.

“I’ll remember that now, and when I drive past your house in future, I’ll be sure to wave or toot if I see you.” The idea of her looking out the window just to see him first thing in the morning made him beam; it also made the thought of any future morning journeys that little bit more bearable.

“Well, I’m glad. I’ll be sure to wave back.” Belle was blushing at the entire thing, she felt like a little schoolgirl again, and she couldn't help but gaze into his deep chocolate eyes, particularly as they were so soft and warm, all for her.

Gold caught sight of the clock. As much as he would have loved to stay and spend time with Belle this evening, he had an out of work appointment to attend. He frowned a little and Belle asked him what’s wrong. There always seemed to be something keeping them apart.

“I have to go soon” – Gold sighed – “I have an utterly pointless appointment which I can’t miss… I’d rather stay and have tea with you than be told about algae,” – Belle looked completely lost - “I wouldn’t even ask…” he said, wearily. The whole situation was a pain in the arse. A specialist was coming out, by order of the government authorities, to ensure that the algae growing in the pond at the bottom of the garden wasn’t poisonous. It evidently wasn’t or else the fish wouldn’t still be swimming around, they’d be floating, and that bastard pet of next doors would be long dead because it was forever trying to eat the fish and leaving dead birds in his garden.

“Well, you have lived without me this long so I’m pretty sure you can survive until tomorrow.” She said, in an attempt to cheer him up. Belle leaned into him and lightly knocked him to the left for reassurance and Gold gently knocked back in the opposite direction to acknowledge that she was right.

“I’ll see you tomorrow at seven thirty then,” he said before taking his weight off the desk. He had been leaning up against it in order to take the pressure off his leg. It was never a good idea for him to stand in one spot for a prolonged period but he couldn’t bear to leave Belle’s side, so he didn’t.

“You’ll see me before that. I’ll look out for you tomorrow morning.” Belle said, reminding him that she would be waving as he drove past the house. “Oh, and try not to look so grumpy. I’ve seen what you look like when you drive…” Gold playfully pretended to be wounded at her observation as he turned to leave the classroom.

“Wait…”- Belle caught his hand with hers before meeting his gaze, and moved her hands to tenderly cup his face before drawing it down towards hers and planting a soft, lingering kiss on his lips. This time his eyes were closed and he was fully relaxed. 

“To get you through your appointment. Be nice,” she said, her eyes still firmly locked on his. It was the only excuse she could think of to justify the kiss.

Gold was rooted to the spot, hands on her hips and his eyes firmly locked on her, studying every inch of her face from her eyes to her mouth, committing it to memory. He placed an almost ghost like kiss on her forehead and smiled, before leaving the classroom. Although he always hated saying goodbye to her, he was certainly leaving in much better spirits this evening than he had anticipated earlier.

As the door closed, Belle could hear something – if she didn’t know any better she would say it was melodic – It surely couldn’t be...? She thought before she opened the door of her classroom, just enough to peek around the corner without being seen. She couldn't believe her eyes and ears. The chancellor was whistling and swinging his cane, going down the corridor. That ruthless reputation of his that he had mentioned earlier, well, that sound, that was the sound of it shattering, she mused...


	5. Your Carriage Awaits

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big thank you to all of you readers - I must say you are extremely patient! It took me over a month to upload this chapter so for that I apologise profusely. So much has happened and my life got extremely busy so I had to put writing on the back-burner, albeit temporarily. Now I'm currently bed-bound, as advised by the doctor and as I can't work, I thought I might as well catch up on some writing!
> 
> Thank you for hanging in this far and also a big thank you to @Mayila - who has been keeping me sane with some very lovely emails and has also agreed to proof read this work for me... She is such a fantastic help! X

Gold glanced up at the clock and saw that it was time to call it quits, much to his relief, or else the students would soon be complaining about his slave-driver tendencies. He had no desire to stay in school any longer than absolutely necessary today because he had a very important appointment after work; He was taking Miss French out to dinner. He hadn’t see her all day, well, with the exception of when he was driving to work earlier that morning and Belle was stood by her window with her curly hair tousled, wearing a white morning coat and sipping a cup of what he could only assume was tea and she gave him a polite wave, just as she promised she would. He had hoped to at least see her throughout the course of the day, even if it was a mere glimpse in the corridor, but no – she didn’t even call around to him for lunch – likely because her day was equally as busy as his. Friday’s were always maniac in school; teachers wanted to wrap up everything done during the week in order to embrace the weekend – and the copious amounts of essay marking that came with it.

The professor dismissed the class and immediately drove home, ensuring to take the back roads to avoid the usual home-time traffic. Today was not a day he wanted to be sitting in traffic for well over an hour, not that he did any other but today he didn’t have the time; he had to shower, shave and stick on a fresh suit before going to collect Belle in order to make their eight o'clock table reservation. 

By the time he reached home, he was slightly behind schedule. His time seemed to go by in a haze – he had found himself undressed, showered and stood in front of the mirror, shaving. However, during all the rush he had managed to nick himself with the razor, causing blood to run down the side of his neck. 

“Bloody perfect, just what-a-need right now!” he groaned as he stared at himself in the slightly steamed up mirror. 

Gold dabbed his face with the towel before sticking a tiny piece of toilet paper over the cut, hoping it would help clot the blood. He took more care with the rest of his face to ensure no repeat performance or else he would look like he walked through a wood chipper when going to meet Belle. Whilst staring at his reflection in the mirror, he couldn’t help but fathom why Belle had agreed to go out to him with dinner. He knew he was a difficult man to love and he certainly wasn’t the most attractive man in the world yet she had agreed to at least humour him when he asked her out. It made his mind reel. 

As Gold gazed into the mirror, he was deep in thought and his hand drifted to where Belle’s lips touched his just the day before – it was an event he would never forget. He had stored it away for safe keeping, assuming that it was a one-off experience and that she would soon come to her senses. Gold blinked and seemed to return to the present before pushing his feelings to the back of his mind to finish shaving. He took one final up-close inspection to ensure he hadn’t missed any little patches, rubbing his hands over his skin before feeling satisfied that it was smooth. 

He entered his bedroom to pull on a fresh suit. Being the pedantic, meticulous man that he was, he had left one hanging up on the door earlier that morning to save time faffing about, as well as white shirt and two ties that were lying on the bed; he couldn’t decide whether to wear the red or purple tie. Gold dis-guarded the towel that was wrapped around his waist before proceeding to pull on his underwear, trousers and his crisp white shirt. He grabbed both the ties lying on the bed and made several comparisons in front of the mirror but it only resulted in him flinging both of them back onto the bed out of frustration and despair. He was feeling a little more nervous than he had previously anticipated – he was so rusty when it came to ‘courting’ women. The very fact that he used the word ‘courting’ made him feel that much more unpractised – and anxious.

“This is ridiculous. I dinnae have the time to be fussing over a bloody tie,” he said with exasperation before angrily undoing the collar button of his white shirt and peeling off the piece of toilet paper still stuck to his neck, noticing that at least the bleeding had stopped and shouldn’t leave a mark on his collar.

After checking his watch, he saw that it was almost time to collect Belle and scowled before grabbing his cane and making his way downstairs to pull on a long black woollen coat. His lips quirked slightly and curved upwards as he did so, hinting at the beginnings of a smile; he had remembered that Belle often joked and called it ‘the funeral coat’. For extra protection against the bitter cold chill that came with dark winter evenings, the professor grabbed a golden cashmere scarf and hung it around his neck, not bothering to wrap it around. 

“Oh, mustn’t forget you…” he said as he grabbed his gift for Belle before locking the door and making his way to the car. He laughed at himself in a pathetic manner as he got into the car and put her gift on the front – passenger seat. No doubt Miss French was going to find his old-fashioned nature very embarrassing and, being as polite as she was, she wouldn't have the heart to turn it – or him - down. 

*********

“Shit…” Belle felt herself become flustered as she heard the sound of her front doorbell. She hadn’t realised the time and assumed she still had a good 5 minutes before the professor would be arriving but evidently not. She didn't have the time to properly fix her hair so she would have to just be content with it down. 

Belle went to grab her black stilettos but could only find one; the other, she could only guess, was buried under the piles of clean clothes which she chucked to the floor earlier – all because she couldn’t decide on an outfit for dinner. Cursing herself and her lack of organisation, she threw the clothes all around the room until at last she found the other shoe and thanked the powers-that-be for answering her pleas. She quickly proceeded to grab the handbag lying at the foot of her bed and a diamond bracelet from her jewellery box, before making her way downstairs.

When Belle opened the door, the professor was stood with his back towards her, amusing himself by breathing hot air to see a smoky cloud form. He had only been waiting for a minute or so. 

“Miss French, I –ah – “ Gold cleared his throat and was about to conjure up some creative reason as to why he was having fun breathing in the cold evening air but he found himself stunned at the woman before him, she had rendered him completely speechless.

Belle felt a little self-conscious of her outfit choice because he just seemed to be staring at her, wordless, and she couldn’t tell if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

“Sorry, I was having a bit of a Cinderella moment upstairs – I couldn’t find my other shoe,” she said, fidgeting with the diamond bracelet still not secured around her wrist. 

“Here, allow me.” Gold said, giving her a small, warm smile as he placed something on the porch fence. Belle couldn’t quite see what; she was too distracted by the professor, who was now gently holding her wrist between his cold hands to secure the snip. 

“Thanks. Is this ok? For dinner I mean? I wasn’t sure what to wear because you didn’t give me any clue as to where we are going” She asked, still unsure of his facial expression.

“Might be a little overdressed for a Chinese takeaway” he quipped – it caused Belle to playfully slap him on the chest – but he continued in a much more serious manner, “You are… stunning, Belle.” He couldn’t help but gaze in wonder at the woman before him; she looked striking wearing a sophisticated black cocktail dress with off the shoulder straps and tall black heels with her long brown curls loosely framing her face and although her makeup was light, she wore red lipstick which made her already-perfect smile look even more magnificent. 

Gold realised that her gift was still sitting on the porch fence and at that moment he wasn’t sure if he should even give it to her because it was silly but against his brain’s instructions, he reached behind and presented it to Belle.

“I’know it’s really old fashioned so don’t-“, but before Gold could finish his sentence she placed her index finger over his lips, stopping him dead in his rambling tracks. 

“I love it, thank you,” she said beaming, as he gave her the red rose. It was the most beautiful flower she had ever seen – a long green stem, it was actually the perfect length to sit in the tall glass vase sitting on her upstairs desk, and the petals were pure red and almost as big as her hand, so when she went to smell the sweet scent, it almost covered half her face.

“Come in while I go and put this in water or else you’ll freeze,” Belle took Gold’s hand, not giving him time to answer, before closing the door to go put the flower in water.

The moment he entered, he immediately felt warm – not just because of the heat in the house but because it felt so homely and welcoming – not at all like his place, which felt cold and empty, despite his many antiques and knick-knacks. He couldn’t help but notice the wonderful smell, he found it difficult to put his finger on it but it was Christmassy and homey – as if someone were baking cinnamon cookies with slight hints of vanilla. 

Belle returned, beaming at him before grabbing a red scarf and black jacket that were hanging over the banister. “Thank you for the rose, it’s beautiful,” She said as she gave him a warm, loving smile and gently squeezed his hand. Gold waved it off as if it were a simple gesture but he was glad, truly glad, that she liked it because, although it was beautiful, it paled in comparison to the beauty that stood before him.

“So, where are you taking me?” she quizzed, excitedly, snapping him out of his thoughts. This evening had been an entire mystery to her; he certainly wasn’t giving away any details.

Gold merely extended his arm, offering out his hand. “My lady, your carriage awaits…” he said, bowing – as much as his knee and back would permit- before escorting Belle to the car...


	6. M'Lady

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A very brief chapter update because I have had so many requests! Sorry, truly I am, for taking so long to upload these chapters - I'm teaching (history) at the moment so my schedule is pretty full on. Again, I can only apologise. I do find it very flattering that so many of you have requested an update. Never thought people would be so keen to read my ramblings - thank you all! X

The car journey had taken slightly longer than expected because Gold was cautious when it came to the conditions of the road in winter; all it took was one bit of black ice for a car to spin out of control so he played it safe and stuck well within the speed limits. However, they had no difficulty in passing the extra time as Belle had taken to playing a game in an attempt to work out the mystery destination of their date. Gold had never intended for it to be a secret but he found it much too entertaining watching Belle’s cogs turn as she racked her brain for possible ideas. Her tenacity both impressed and amused him because each incorrect answer only seemed to fuel her determination.

However, her little guessing-game came to an end when Gold took a turn off and she detected a change in the roads surface; it had gone from being smooth and stable to slightly bumpy and uneven. Just ahead, small lights soon came into view and illuminated either side of a passage, revealing the new surface to be a white gravelled driveway rather than rough road. As they drove on, they saw beautifully lit trees and shrubs adorned in Christmas lighting – some were decorated with jars containing glowing outdoor candles whereas others were draped in fairy-lights that seemed to twinkle under the night sky.

“Here we are,” Gold said, as the car came to a slow stop. They had arrived in the allocated car-park to the far-rear of the grounds. While Belle gathered up her belongings, Gold reached into the seat behind and grabbed his cane before exiting the car. After he slowly limped across the slippery gravel and made it safely to the front passenger side, he opened the door for Belle.

“M’lady…” he said, as he made a theatrical motion with his hand and extended it towards her. Although the professor had a bum leg, he at least had the advantage of flat shoes with decent grip, which were two things that Belle lacked. She was lethal enough at the best of times so he had no intentions of testing her skills on frosty, uneven gravel in the dark.

“Why thank you kind, sir.” She said, as her mouth curved to form a warm, grateful smile. Belle was only too happy to take Gold’s hand because tonight was not a night where she wanted to find herself on the ground – it was how so many of their other encounters seemed to end up.

As they walked arm in arm, the pair were utterly content just being close to one another and despite it only being their first date, everything felt incredibly natural – it was as if they had known one another for years. Belle soon found that the gravel proved more difficult to navigate than she had initially anticipated, so unconsciously she leaned closer into Gold for the extra support. The action caused him to protectively tighten his grip on her hand before he pulled her closer into his side.

After passing a row neatly aligned evergreen trees, they came to a grey slate walk-way which made the remainder of the dander a little easier. It led up to the most spectacular white-wash stone building that had been concealed up until then. Although it looked quaint and inviting, there was an unmistakeable air of luxury to it - much like what one would experience in an expensive countryside getaway.

When they reached the main entrance, their bodies tingled and burned due to the temperature difference. As Belle looked around, she was captivated by the beautiful décor. The only other time she had seen anything so magnificent was in a magazine and she wouldn’t have been surprised if this place featured in a couple.

At the front desk they were greeted by a tall, trim, sharply dressed man. “Welcome to Lumiere’s, how may I be of service, Sir?” he said with a courteous smile.

“Reservation for two, under the name Gold,” replied the professor, flashing the man a brief smile.

The receptionist ran his finger down a page in a large lined book before swiftly locating the reservation. “Here we are. You are actually a little early and the table is not yet ready so would you care to take a seat in the lounge while you wait?” he said, looking rather apologetically.

At that moment, Belle saw a brief flicker of irritation on Gold’s face. It would have been almost undetectable to anyone else but having spent so much time with him over the last few weeks, she learned to read a majority of his facial expressions pretty quickly. In the hopes of calming him down, Belle took his hand and entwined her warm fingers with his much colder digits and it seemed to have the desired effect because he relaxed at once.

“Yes, that would be lovely. Thank you,” she said to the waiter, whilst continuing to hold Gold’s hand. Initially he was taken aback by Belle’s confidence and his eyes drifted from her smiling face to their hands, which were now firmly locked together but nonetheless, he found the gesture to be very comforting and reassuring.

They were escorted past a very grand staircase in an impressive hallway before being directed into a lavish lounge area that was impeccably decorated with plush vintage armchairs, a French-style rug with the most wonderful designs and an impressive stone fireplace complete with a roaring fire, as well as a bar tucked away in the corner.  
“Now sir, would you like to order drinks while you both wait?” queried the waiter, whilst the couple removed their coats and took their seats.

“Yes. Belle, what would you like to drink?” Gold asked. The question caught her a little off guard because her mind was elsewhere entirely; she had been ogling the professor’s bum since he had removed his coat and scarf – her justification being ‘there was no harm in just looking’.

“Ah. I think I’ll have a red wine please,” she said, as she lightly blushed before smiling at the gentleman attendant and returning her focus to the professor. Gold opted for a non-alcoholic drink of home-made ginger lemonade of some sorts because he was driving but admittedly, he didn’t really drink much anyway – well, with the exception of the odd glass of 12 year old Scottish whiskey but that was a fairly rare event.

It only took the waiter a few minutes to fetch their drinks before he left both Belle and Gold to their own company.

Belle gazed into the fire before taking a sip of wine and then anchored her attention on Gold. “I missed seeing you today, you know?” she said, in a sincere and heartfelt tone before giving him a weak smile.

Belle’s blunt honesty caused Gold’s eyes to widen out of shock and she seemed to reciprocate his motions out of fear. It was a new experience - for people to say that they ‘missed’ him, particularly in the university, where staff and students alike seemed to share a universal dislike towards him.

“Not something I hear often, I can assure you. Most people are only too happy to avoid me, especially on a Friday,” he said, trying to make light of the situation. He couldn’t conceal the fact that he felt warmed at the notion of her ‘missing’ him because it wasn’t the first time she had said as much.

Belle gave him a disapproving look for his self-deprecating remark. He really ought to have known by this stage that she did genuinely enjoy his company. She never understood why he never seemed to fully believe it; there was always some doubt or hesitation that often lurked beneath his smile.

“Well, not me,” she was absolute in her answer. Belle fluttered her eyelashes at Gold before she bit her lower lip, causing him to take a gulp of his drink and smile like a love-sick teenager.


End file.
